Dane's Top 25 - Week 1

Yes, we haven't played all the football that needs to be played this weekend. We still have to submit our ballot today, and this is what I'm submitting. Remember, we don't have enough data for straight-up resume voting yet (like I said, some games this weekend haven't even been played), so we are still diong a little of the gut feeling/how are they gonna do the rest of their season voting style.

QUICK HITS

OKSU - Looks like that wasn't such a bad pick after all, huh Bird?

To put things into perspective, we don't really know if UGA's offense is all that good, and with Sturdivant gone (again) things are only going to get worse. However, OKSU has shown that they can play on both sides of the ball, and that their offense just may be the real deal.

Cal - Stomped Maryland with gusto. They get to fill the shoes of Oregon as the "team that might possibly but probably not unseat USC in the Pac-10." Best is just flat out sick, and if there's any runningback that is going to get a Heisman this year, I'd bet on him.

Oklahoma -  If Bradford was out for the season, I'd drop them further. They didn't play that well, but BYU did come out swinging... it isn't like they had trouble with a AA team. I think the sooners will be able to handle Idaho State and Tulsa in the meantime, and Bradford will be back up and running against Miami, leaving them able to still to big things with their season. Besides, who the hell else am I supposed to put up there?

VPI - No, they did not produce offensively. Not surprising, anyone who was expecting they would doesn't know what they are talking about. They still kept the game very close, but didn't pull it out. However, I seriously considered putting 'Bama above USC after watching that game. Jones is not the only receiving threat on the team, and that defense is just outstanding. So, VPI gets to hang out for a little while until some other teams prove they are better.

LSU - So, is Washington good now? That game also kind of threw me off. If LSU would have really turned up the heat and blew the Huskies out towards the end I might have sent them upward. While they definitely have some big questions to answer regarding week-in and week-out play, they didn't screw anything up so bad to really send them down the line either. So, they get to hang out in the 10-15 range for a little bit longer.

Georgia Tech - The more I think about this game, the more I worry about Thursday. We looked about the same this past Saturday as we did last year against JSU. Handoffs were sloppy, receivers weren't catching easy ones, our defensive line showed how bad we will miss those 3 draftees (but Derrick Morgan is a MACHINE!), and we still give the ball away too much. Nothing stood out as season-destroying, but our record is going to look like crap if we do not get a lot more polished in a hurry. We drop a spot, but I have a feeling that if this was week 5, we'd be lower.

Boise State - Doesn't move. That game sucked. Oregon sucked, and Boise played like crap. I'm almost tempted to put them lower, but damn, you can't put everyone in your Top 25 between #20 and #25.

Ohio State - Proved me right. Expect another embarrassment this weekend. Expect them to not win the Big 10, or even get a BCS berth. Gotta love week 1 predictions that can blow up in your face!

uga - Did exactly what I thought they would do. Their offensive line wasn't quite as good as everyone thought it was going to be, and let's face it - that's what the team was hanging its hat on. As I said in the podcast with TSK a while ago, Cox is unproven (read: going to suck for at least 4 games) and their RB situation is just laughable. Put that together with the patented Willie "Wasting away linebacker talent and teaching the secondary to have lobster hands" Martinez defense and the pups deserved to be outside of the Top 15. Expect them to drop again, even if they do beat Carolina this week.

WVU - Still my pick for the Big East, but then again, who really gives a shit?

Navy - PURE LOVE FOR NAVY. I know, I just railed the Buckeyes a few minutes ago but I love Navy, end of story. Besides, I really think that Navy, playing like they did last week, would beat every other team in the nation ranked lower than them right now.

Tennessee - Dropped some serious offense on their patsy this week. I think people will be surprised at how well this Vols team shapes up. No, they won't contend for the SEC Title but they aren't going to be an embarrassment this year, either.

Yeah, I said it. If you don't like it, feel free to comment. Big game tonight, whereby Dane's other preseason pick to be good (Miami) comes out and surprises everyone by handily beating FSU.